Naomi Campbell on Competing with Coco Rocha and Karolina Kurkova on 'The Face'

In the '90s, Naomi Campbell became one of the world's best-known supermodels. And though she never left the spotlight (she still lands covers and walks the runway more than two decades into her career), she's about to shine in a totally new realm: reality TV. Campbell is executive producing and starring in Oxygen's The Face, which takes the premise of America's Next Top Model and adds the competitive mentoring element of The Voice. In the seven-episode series hosted by fashion photographer Nigel Barker, Campbell, former Victoria's Secret Angel Karolina Kurkova, and kinetic model Coco Rocha choose teams of four from 24 hopefuls, coaching their girls through a variety of photo shoot challenges. The winner will become the face of Ulta Beauty's fall ad campaign.

With guest stints from fashion's behind-the-scenes icons, including photographer Patrick Demarchelier, the show is a delicious mix of industry cache and reality drama. We caught up with the still wheelchair-bound supermodel at Pasadena's Langham Hotel during this weekend's TCA press tour. There, Campbell told us all about her tough love tactics, her thoughts competing against Rocha and Kurkova, and why she doesn't make New Year's resolutions.

ELLE: We just saw the first episode of The Face.

Naomi Campbell: What do you think?

ELLE: We are hooked! We can't wait for the next one.

NC: You are? Yay! Which team? Ooooh, you better be team Naomi, but I have a feeling you're team Coco.

ELLE: It's hard because there are particular girls that we like on each team, which we think makes it more interesting.

ELLE: Did you have any sort of coach or mentor when you were starting out in your modeling career?

NC: No, not really. When I was working for Yves Saint Laurent doing couture, I could ask, "How do I take off the cape?" And of course they would show me. Certain things like that, yes. But I didn't have a mentor. I wish I had. I gained life lessons from my mother, my aunts, but I learned as I went along.

ELLE: Was there any particular life lesson that you took from your mom or your aunts that really stayed with you?

NC: It's about drive. Perseverance is something I understood from my mom at an early age, and committing yourself. And when you do commit yourself, how much you give—in that respect giving 110 percent. Because, "It will be that much harder for you." That's what I was always told.

ELLE: When picking the girls for your team on The Face, what did you look for in the contestants?

NC Passion, thick skin, being able to change, and willingness to follow direction. Because that's what it is—you've got to listen the first time around. Second time around you could've lost the job. So those elements are important to me.

ELLE: How fierce does the competition get between you, Rocha, and Kurkova?

NC: It's exactly what you said, it's a competition. So, I'm not there to make friends. And we have a girl's life in our hands, a girl who will be winning a big cosmetic contract. Back in my day, in the '90s when I started modeling, that was the goal. Once you achieved that, that was the end—you end with a big beauty contract. This young hopeful is going to be starting from that. It's incredible! So of course I want one of my girls to win. What, you want Karolina and I and Coco to be best friends? You wouldn't watch that show. [laughs] No, we're friends, but we're here to mentor our girls. Let the competition begin.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

ELLE: In the '90s, you really kicked off the era of the supermodel, and you broke down a lot of racial barriers while doing so. Do you think the modeling industry has become more accepting since then?

NC: It's okay. Sometimes it's a trend when you just get the one model type. But "women of color" is a variation. It's all shades, and it's many more ethnicities than one, and I'm sorry, I'm not seeing that. I have my hopes high, but I do get disappointed. And I do sometimes think I worked all these years, and I feel like I didn't help enough. I try. ELLE has been a big part of my career, so I'm forever eternally grateful. But not only in my career, ELLE has also consistently used women of color. ELLE was known for that, and it would be nice if they could keep that.

ELLE: Hopefully the whole media will get there.

NC: When? We're in 2013. That's my point. We shouldn't be discussing this. But I want to be optimistic, and I want to stay positive. I always keep my hopes on this particular subject high.

ELLE: Speaking of 2013, are you the kind of person who makes New Year's resolutions?

NC: No. I think if you want to make a resolution, you can make it any day, any time. I just want to enjoy my life and enjoy working with the people I work with. That's really it. I'm looking forward to this year. I take each day as it comes, and I think there's going to be some great things happening, for all of us.

The Face premieres Tuesday, February 12 at 9 p.m. on Oxygen. A kick-off special, The Face: The Fight to Make the Final 12, airs Tuesday, February 5 at 9 p.m. on Oxygen. For more info, visit theface.oxygen.com.